What Are The Symptoms Of Chlamydia
Chlamydia is known as a silent infection because most infected people are asymptomatic and lack abnormal physical examination findings. Estimates of the proportion of chlamydia-infected people who develop symptoms vary by setting and study methodology two published studies that incorporated modeling techniques to address limitations of point prevalence surveys estimated that only about 10% of men and 5-30% of women with laboratory-confirmed chlamydial infection develop symptoms.21.22 The incubation period of chlamydia is poorly defined. However, given the relatively slow replication cycle of the organism, symptoms may not appear until several weeks after exposure in those persons who develop symptoms.
In women, the bacteria initially infect the cervix, where the infection may cause signs and symptoms of cervicitis , and sometimes the urethra, which may result in signs and symptoms of urethritis . Infection can spread from the cervix to the upper reproductive tract , causing pelvic inflammatory disease , which may be asymptomatic 23 or acute, with typical symptoms of abdominal and/or pelvic pain, along with signs of cervical motion tenderness, and uterine or adnexal tenderness on examination.
Men who are symptomatic typically have urethritis, with a mucoid or watery urethral discharge and dysuria. A minority of infected men develop epididymitis , presenting with unilateral testicular pain, tenderness, and swelling.24
How Can I Avoid A Chlamydia Throat Infection
Now that you know a bit more about oral chlamydia, heres how to lower your risk of infection:
Use Condoms
When we say wear condoms during sex, dont forget that this includes oral sex, the leading cause of oral chlamydia. If a partner has chlamydia on their genital area and you go down on them, the infection can be passed to your mouth. On the other hand, if your partner has chlamydia on their mouth and they go down on you, it can be passed to your genitals. While condoms dont always prevent STIs, they definitely lower your risk.
Have The Talk With Your Partner
Communication is important in any relationship, whether its a one-night stand or youre with a monogamous partner. Being open with one another, and making sure that you dont fool around with someone who has not been tested, will help you to avoid unwanted infections. Honesty is the best policy when it comes to most things, and that includes sexually transmitted infections. We get it: having the talk can be awkward. But getting an STI is way more inconvenient. Own your confidence and be unabashed about your own wellness.
Letting Partners Know You Have Chlamydia
Sexual partners may be infected too. If you have chlamydia, anyone you have had sex with from the last 6 months needs to be informed, tested and treated.
If they dont know, they could reinfect you or infect someone else if they are not treated. dont receive treatment.
Most people will appreciate being told they may have an infection and it is an important step in preventing further infection in the community.
Your local GP and sexual health centre can help you inform your partners and let them know that they need a test. This process is called partner notification. It can be done anonymously, and your confidentiality is always respected.
You can also anonymously notify your sexual partners of the need to get tested and treated for chlamydia via the Let Them Know website if you feel unable to speak to them personally.
There are also nurses who can help you anonymously notify your partners. They can be contacted on .
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The Symptoms Of Chlamydia In Men Are As Follows
1. Painful urination: Often burning sensation when urinating
2. Fever
3. Urethritis: Inflammation of the urethra
4. Reactive arthritis: Inflammation of joints
5. Unusual Discharge through the penis Graphical Image: Watch the photo of discharge through Penis
6. Sore testicles : Epididymitis: Painful inflammation of the testicular tube system, which can lead to sterile and infertile. Graphical Image: Watch the photo of the swollen testicles due to Epididymis
7. Chlamydia in the eyes
What Will Happen If You Dont Get Chlamydia Treatment
Though Chlamydia rarely shows symptoms and it a very common type of STD, if it is not treated early it can create a big mess.
- Chlamydia can reach up to fallopian tube and uterus causing PID . At first, PID does not show any symptoms but later it can be very painful, even lead to ectopic pregnancy or infertility. By getting tested for Chlamydia you eventually reduce your chance of getting PID.
- In men, Chlamydia can cause nongonococcal urethritis that is an infection of the urethra . It can also cause epididymis, which is an infection of the epididymis. The epididymis is a tube carrying sperm away from testes. It may also cause proctitis that is an infection of the rectum.
- Chlamydia can amplify your chance if getting caught by HIV, a type of virus causing AIDS.
- A pregnant woman suffering from Chlamydia if not treated early, she can pass the infection to the newborn as well. It can cause pneumonia, eye infection and too early birth in babies.
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How Do You Avoid Getting Mouth Chlamydia
How to avoid getting infected the only guaranteed way to avoid chlamydia is not having sex, but this is not a suitable options for most people. To reduce your chance of getting chlamydia you can try the following:
- Choose sexual partners carefully however difficult, you should try to discuss any previous sexual history with a new partner before you first have sex
- Get tested before the start of a new relationship and do not have unprotected sex until you know your test results and your partners an extended STI test kit which tests for chlamydia, gonorrhoea, HIV and syphilis is recommended
- Use barrier contraception such as the male condom carefully and correctly always apply the condom before any sexual contact, including oral sex
- If you are diagnosed with chlamydia, always follow the advice about treatment very carefully try to make sure, if you have had chlamydia once, you dont get it again and keep getting tested regularly
- Use condoms at the same time as other contraceptives other contraceptives dont protect against STIs and using condoms alone as a method of contraception has a high failure rate. Women are advised to use a reliable contraceptive method to avoid an unplanned pregnancy, but to use condoms as well, to reduce the chance of acquiring an STI
Who is it at a higher risk of STIs like oral chlamydia? risk factors for chlamydia include:
- Young age
- Multiple partners/frequent change of partner/overlapping partners
- Gay/bisexual men
Can You Cure Mouth Chlamydia
Yes you can chlamydia in the mouth, just as at other sites of the body, can be treated and completely removed with a simple course of antibiotics. However, its important to follow your treatment regime properly to ensure the infection is removed. Also, treatment only removes existing infections and wont protect you from future infection.
Does oral chlamydia go away on its own? if chlamydia is untreated, it is thought that up to 50% of people will clear the infection themselves within 12 months. However, in the remainder of people who dont clear the infection, a chronic chlamydial infection becomes established, and in the longer term this can result in serious negative medical outcomes.
How does oral chlamydia treatment work? the first choice antibiotic for chlamydia is the antibiotic doxycycline 100mg taken twice a day by mouth for 7 days (this should not be used in pregnancy.
Make sure you use treatment correctly it is important that you:
- Take all the antibiotics as instructed dont miss any out
- Do not have sex on treatment or for 7 days afterwards, not even oral sex or sex with a condom
- Your current/most recent partners should be tested, and treated as they are contacts
- Attend a sexual health clinic for a full STI screen
Do I need another test after treatment? usually no, except in the following situations:
- You have to be treated with a different antibiotic to the 2 standard treatments, e.g. erythromycin
- You have rectal chlamydia as well
- You are pregnant
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Can Pharyngeal Chlamydia Be Prevented
The best protection against oral chlamydia is by avoiding unprotected sex. Using a complete barrier method reduces your risk of acquiring pharyngeal chlamydia during oral sexthis includes using a polyurethane or latex condom or a dental dam. Partial barriers or contraceptive methods such as birth control pills and spermicidal lube do not decrease your risk of getting pharyngeal chlamydia, or other STIs, from your sex partner.
You are not likely to get oral chlamydia from mouth-to-mouth contact, including kissing or sharing a cup. However, a recent study suggested that gonorrhea, another STI, may potentially be transmitted by kissing. While the study did not find this to be the case with chlamydia, more research will help scientists learn more about the role of saliva in the transmission of STIs .
How Does Chlamydia Spread
Chlamydia is spread when a person has unprotected sex with an infected person.
Because chlamydial infection often has no symptoms, many people do not realise they have the infection.
Even if you know a person well, you may not be able to tell they have an STI, because people can look healthy and still have chlamydia.
Remember, you can get chlamydia and other STIs from a new sexual partner who has in the past had sex with someone who is infected.
It can also be spread from a long-term partner who has had sex with other people.
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Can You Get Chlamydia In Your Throat
Its possible, but not likely, that you could get chlamydia in your throat. To understand how or why it could happen, its important to consider how chlamydia is transmitted.
A person can get chlamydia when their mucus membranes, such as those of the vagina, penis, or rectum, come in contact with chlamydia bacteria. These bacteria enter the mucus membranes and multiply.
Chlamydia doesnt always cause symptoms. However, if not treated, the infection can result in damage that cant be reversed.
The most common way chlamydia is spread is through unprotected anal or vaginal sex. The bacteria typically infect and cause symptoms in the location they first entered the body.
Its possible that chlamydia can be transmitted to your throat if you give oral sex to a partner who has contracted a genital chlamydia infection.
Additionally, getting oral sex from someone who has contracted a chlamydia infection of the throat can potentially transmit the bacteria to your genitals.
You cant get chlamydia mouth-to-mouth kissing.
For a reason doctors dont fully understand, chlamydia bacteria more easily infect the groin area, such as the vagina, penis, or rectum, than the mouth.
- mouth sores that dont heal
- sores around lips and mouth
However, you can contract the infection in both the throat and genital area. In addition to a sore throat, you may have chlamydia symptoms in your genitals.
How Can Chlamydia Be Prevented
Latex male condoms, when used consistently and correctly, can reduce the risk of getting or giving chlamydia.53 The surest way to avoid chlamydia is to abstain from vaginal, anal, and oral sex, or to be in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who has been tested and is known to be uninfected.
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How Is It Contracted
Chlamydia is transmitted primarily through sexual activity. The following are the most common ways:
- unprotected intercourse with an infected partner
- oral sex, although a less common cause of infection as bacteria Chlamydia trachomatis targets the genital area rather than the throat. Although it is possible theoretically, the cases of infestation from mouth-to-penis and penis-to-mouth contact are rare
- vagina, cervix, anus, penis or mouth contacting infected secretions or fluids which means that contraction can occur even if the penis or tongue does not enter the vagina or anus
- bacteria can travel from the vaginal area to the anus or rectum of women while wiping with toilet paper
- sharing sex toys
- from mother to the newborn during vaginal childbirth through the infected birth channel
- infection can be transferred on fingers from the genitals to other parts of the body
Chlamydia is not contracted through simple kissing, handshaking, any casual contacts, sharing baths, towels and cups as well as from toilet seats.
Chlamydia trachomatis, an obligate intracellular human pathogen, is one of four bacterial species in the genus Chlamydia. 3D illustration
Burning Sensation When Urinating
Chlamydia can cause a burning sensation when you urinate. Its easy to mistake this for a symptom of a urinary tract infection.
You might also feel like you have the urge to urinate more often than usual. And when you do go to urinate, only a little bit comes out. Your urine might also smell unusual or look cloudy.
If you have chalmydia, you might also feel some pain during sex, especially intercourse.
You may also some bleeding and lingering irritation after any type of sexual activity involving penetration.
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Treatment For Oral Stds
Treatment depends on the type of STD and its severity. Mild oral herpes, for example, can be treated through the prescription of a topical anesthetic to reduce the pain from oral blisters and lesions while the immune system works to restore your oral health. In more severe cases, however, anti-viral medications can help to speed up the process. Oral gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphilis are usually treated with a range of antibiotics. A prescription mouth rinse can be used to help cleanse and soothe canker sores and other mouth irritations.
Chlamydia In Female Genitals
Chlamydia in female genitals is often recognized by:
- vaginal discharge
- bleeding when not on period
- Pain and discomfort whenurinating
- Bleeding immediately after sexualintercourse
For most women, chlamydia will infect the opening to their uterus, known as the cervix. This is the type of infection that causes discharge and redness. If left untreated, there is a high chance it will travel to the uterus, ovaries, and fallopian tubes. In such cases, chlamydia can result in pelvic inflammatory disease and cause painful intercourse, inflammation, and abdominal pain.
The image below depicts a cervix inflammation in the early stages and has resulted in redness and vaginal discharge. Complications have not yet occurred, but if this infection isnt properly managed, it can cause serious complications in the fallopian tubes and result in infertility or ectopic pregnancy.
In this particular example, the discharge is white andcan easily be confused with a harmless discharge. But, the infected fluid canhave a very strong smell. If the color of the discharge is yellow, it couldmean the vagina has been infected and could possibly carry chlamydia.
Aside from discharge and a cervix inflammation,chlamydia can also cause blood in the urine. Infected females can experiencevaginal bleeding or spotting after intercourse or between periods.
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How Is Oral Gonorrhea Diagnosed
Definitive diagnosis usually depends on isolating N. gonorrhoeae from the throat however, most doctors consider a positive rapid throat swab, designed to detect N. gonorrhoeae, a good recommended presumptive diagnosis of the disease. Doctors usually will treat the patient with antibiotics that are effective on the locally occurring N. gonorrhoeaestrains. Currently, the CDC recommends the following treatment for gonorrhea: ceftriaxone, 250mg IM plus a single dose of azithromycin, 1 g, orally. Furthermore, if possible, the patient’s sex partners from the past 60 days should be evaluated and similarly treated .
On the bright side of this disease, many people that develop oral gonorrhea never develop symptoms and spontaneously clear the infection without antibiotics. Those individuals that develop symptoms may also clear the infection, but many are treated with antibiotics. Because a large number of N. gonorrhoeae bacterial strains are resistant to some antibiotics, the treating health care practitioner usually will choose one or more antibiotics that are known to be effective against the strains that are predominant in the patient’s local geographic region.
On the darker side of this oral infection, is the rare instance in an immunocompromised individual when the person could develop systemic spread of the disease.
How Do You Get Oral Chlamydia
A person can get oral chlamydia by giving vaginal, penile, or anal oral sex to another person already infected with the bacteria.
Chlamydia trachomatis can also be spread from an infected persons throat to the penis. Research has not shown that the infection can spread from an infected persons throat to the vagina or rectum during oral sex.
Chlamydia does not seem to spread through kissing.
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What Are The Most Common Oral Chlamydia Symptoms
Pop quiz time: whats the difference between throat chlamydia and chlamydia in the genitals? If youre not sure, dont feel bad. Many of us dont even realize that there are multiple types of this sexually transmitted infection.
To further complicate matters, both genital and throat chlamydia can be difficult to detect without proper screening. Both forms, in addition to rectal chlamydia, may never show any visible symptoms. You see, chlamydia is typically an asymptomatic infection.
If chlamydia in the throat does show easily detectable symptoms, they are often as simple as asore throat and possibly a low grade fever and/or swollen lymph nodes. All of these are easily mistaken for something else if a doctor isnt specifically looking for chlamydia.
There are two sides to this coin. Since symptoms are mild, and so many different things can cause a sore throat and fever, the infection is often dismissed and goes untreated. This may make chlamydia seem like no big deal. The truth is, neglecting regular screenings can cause the infection to get worse even if there have never been any symptoms in the first place.
Oral chlamydia symptoms in women:
- Sore throat
Oral chlamydia symptoms in men:
- Low-grade fever
- Sore throat
- Swollen lymph nodes
If you dont get screened for oral chlamydia and you have an infection, it can get worse. If left undetected and untreated, chlamydia can lead to serious consequences, including pelvic inflammatory disease , infertility and chronic pelvic pain.